The present invention relates generally to counting devices, and, in particular, to electronic counting devices.
In retail stores, employees typically work in isolated or back-to-back shifts. For example, an employee working for a convenience store or a gas stop will typically work a morning shift, and then turn over responsibility to another employee for the afternoon or night shifts. A time consuming duty of an employee beginning a shift at such an establishment includes the taking of inventory of such goods as cigarettes. In particular, the employee must account for the number of cigarette packs and cartons he or she begins the shift with, so that any potential inconsistencies in numbers between shifts can be avoided. If inventory were not taken, the burden of accounting for missing goods that were not sold as evidenced by a receipt would fall on the last employee to take a shift. Therefore, an inventory-taking system must be in place in such stores to avoid the potential for employee theft.
Traditional methods for taking inventory include counting by hand or employing a calculator and thereafter recording the totals. Whereas these methods are sufficient to accomplish the task of taking inventory, mistakes can occur in calculating the goods. Accordingly, employees typically perform the task multiple times for accuracy. Further, these methods are not particularly fast. Therefore, performing them multiple times makes the task of taking inventory both time consuming and tedious.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a convenient and efficient device for taking inventory of goods.